Cannabis is indigenous to Europe and cultivation began during the Copper or Bronze age: a probabilistic synthesis of fossil pollen studies

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Conventional wisdom statesCannabis sativaoriginated in Asia and its dispersal to Europe depended upon human transport. Various Neolithic or Bronze age groups have been named as pioneer cultivators. These theses were tested by examining fossil pollen studies (FPSs), obtained from the European Pollen Database. Many FPSs reportCannabisorHumulus(C/H) with collective names (e.g.Cannabis/Humulusor Cannabaceae). To dissect these aggregate data, we used ecological proxies to differentiateC/Hpollen, as follows: unknownC/Hpollen that appeared in a pollen assemblage suggestive of steppe (Poaceae,Artemisia, Chenopodiaceae) we interpreted as wild-typeCannabis. C/Hpollen in a mesophytic forest assemblage (Alnus, Salix, Populus) we interpreted asHumulus. C/Hpollen curves that upsurged and appeared de novo alongside crop pollen grains we interpreted as cultivated hemp. FPSs were mapped and compared to the territories of archaeological cultures. We analysed 479 FPSs from the Holocene/Late Glacial, plus 36 FPSs from older strata. The results showedC/Hpollen consistent with wild-typeC. sativain steppe and dry tundra landscapes throughout Europe during the early Holocene, Late Glacial, and previous glaciations. During the warm and wet Holocene Climactic Optimum, forests replaced steppe, andHumulusdominated.Cannabisretreated to steppe refugia.C/Hpollen consistent with cultivated hemp first appeared in the Pontic-Caspian steppe refugium. GIS mapping linked cultivation with the Copper age Varna/Gumelniţa culture, and the Bronze age Yamnaya and Terramara cultures. An Iron age steppe culture, the Scythians, likely introduced hemp cultivation to Celtic and Proto-Slavic cultures.

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The most well publicized, as well as the most controversial, Cannabis seed remains (Figure 2) were recovered from the frozen tomb of Iron Age (ca. 2430 BP) nobles of eastern Siberia discovered by Sergei Rudenko in1929 (Rudenko 1970). We have included Rudenko’s account of the occurrence of Cannabis seeds in the tomb, even though much of it is highly conjectural.

"Thus in barrow 2, two smoking sets were found: vessels containing stones that had been in the fire and hemp seeds; above them were shelters supported on six rods, in one case covered with a leather hanging and in the other case probably with a felt hanging, large pieces of which were found in the southwest corner of the tomb. Finally, there was a [leather] flask containing hemp seeds [Figure 2] fixed to one of the legs of a hexapod stand. Consequently we have the full set of articles for carrying out the purification ritual, about which Herodotus wrote in such detail in his description of the Black Sea Scyths. There had been sets for smoking hemp in all the Pazyryk barrows; the sticks for the stand survived in each barrow although the censers and cloth covers had all been stolen except in barrow 2. Hemp smoking was practiced evidently not only for purification, but in ordinary life by both men and women.

"In each vessel besides the stones, as already mentioned above, there was a small quantity of seeds of hemp (Cannabis sativa L. of the variety C. ruderalis Janisch.). Burning hot stones had been placed in the censer and part of the hemp seeds had been charred. Furthermore the handle of the cauldron censer had been bound round with birch bark, evidently because the heat of the stones was such that its handle had become too hot to hold in the bare hands."